Federer prepares to open Centre Court

WIMBLEDON – There were still plenty of Nike logos in evidence – and of course the eponymous “RF”.

In case you were on “Roger Federer apparel sponsor watch”.

The defending champion warmed up with Germany’s Philipp Petzschner on Court 15 Monday morning, in preparation for his first-round match.

And although it was fairly quiet when he began at 10:30 a.m., the crowd was already flowing in to the All England Club. And the Federer fans, knowing their man is a creature of habit, knew exactly where to go.

Here’s what it looked like.

Quiet as a church

There was almost no chatter around the Court, only the bobbing up and down of RF hats. It was as if the fans took that iconic “Quiet! Genius at work” banner that pops up wherever banners are allowed all too literally.

More impressive with Monday morning’s crew was the large percentage of fans who were actually watching as opposed to staring through their phones, as they took video to impress their social-media friends with the fact that they were there.

They were kicking it old school. Of course, their favorite is undoubtedly old school.

Federer opens at 1 p.m. against Dusan Lajovic of Serbia.

And as he takes to Centre Court, it will be just as quiet, before the most respectful applause.

Wimbledon has begun.